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Thursday, November 6, 2014

Strawberry-Lemon Sharbat

The past month was unusually warm and it really didn’t
start feeling like fall until maybe a week ago. Till then the leaves were quite
confused with the high temperatures and weren’t sure whether to start changing
colors or not. But now there are shades of yellow and red in our area, and it
finally feels like fall.

I personally like fall, as it is pleasant and beautiful
outside. But if you ask some of my friends, especially those who live in the
colder parts of the nation, I am sure they will unanimously say that they
prefer summer. Anyway, since strawberries are still available in the market,
here’s a refreshing drink that could remind you of the warm summer days. I had
a box of berries that were starting to spoil (doesn't mean that you should wait for the berries to spoil :-)) and it so happened that my mother
came across a recipe for a strawberry-lemon sharbat in one of my cookbooks. So
we decided to make it and the drink was absolutely delicious.

A sharbat is a
drink prepared from fruit or flower petals and is usually served chilled. A concentrated
sugary syrup is made and diluted with water and ice, to make a cold, refreshing
drink.

Ingredients

Strawberries – 1 cup (approx.)

Lemon juice – 1 tbsp or to taste

Water – 1 cup (approx.)

Sugar to taste

Method

Wash and dice the strawberries. In a saucepan, add the
strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, and water. Place on low to medium heat, stir,
and allow to simmer for about 15-20 minutes. After the 15-20minutes, the
berries would have cooked down and there will be a clear liquid at the bottom.
Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool for a bit. Using a cloth or
metal strainer, strain the liquid into a container.

At this point, you can either discard the pulp or return
it to the saucepan to make strawberry jam.

If you are making the jam, check the sweetness and add
more sugar if required. Place on low heat and allow it to thicken into a
jam-like consistency. Stir occasionally, and once it has reached the desired
consistency, remove from the heat and let it cool. Once cooled, store in an
air-tight container and refrigerate. Bon Appètit.

Note: Wet the rim if the glasses, dip them in salt and then pour the drink. Sip, turn the glass, sip again, and enjoy the salty, tangy, sweet sharbat. This sharbat can also be made with other berries, berry-mix, mangoes, or oranges. Recipe taken from 'World of the East-Vegetarian Cooking' by Madhur Jafferey

About Us

We have been friends for a long time and we have done it all: bunked classes, watched movies, sleepovers, trips and more. Some friendships last only through the school or college years but looks like this one was meant to be…because we are still friends.
After having cooked for our families and friends for a few years, we had the urge to cook for others. This led to the idea of opening a restaurant called ‘Square Meals’, which would take patrons on a gastronomic journey through different parts of India. The restaurant never materialized and the next best thing was this blog.
The Square Meals blog provides taste-tested recipes for you to try in your own kitchens. Join us on our culinary journey as we share some of our mouth-watering creations with foodies all over the world.